K-Pop Band A.C.E Sign to Asian Agent for US Management & Global Strategy

K-pop boy band A.C.E has signed with creative talent house Asian Agent for global strategy and U.S. management, following in the footsteps of star Asian Agent clients like BLACKPINK and (G)I-DLE.

Asian Agent is focused on bringing eastern culture to the west through localized promotion and strategic partnerships. A.C.E and their Korean label and management agency, Beat Interactive, first met the company in Los Angeles in February, when the band performed at the 2020 Academy Awards afterparty congratulating Parasite director Bong Joon-Ho for his historic best picture win.

“I’m delighted to work on expanding their international footprint,” says Asian Agent’s Los Angeles-based chief agent Danny Lee. “I was particularly impressed by the group’s live vocals and their street dancing background. It’s great to see how far they’ve come as a boutique agency act — it feels like a family with them.”

The announcement comes as the quintet — members Jun, Donghun, Wow, Byeongkwan and Chan — prepare for a packed 2021, which they say will include star-powered music collaborations and a fashion endorsement deal.

“The great thing about working with Asian Agent is that we can plan and implement international strategies thoroughly,” said Danny JY Lee, head director at Beat Interactive in Seoul, adding that the past few months of working together has already “led to an increased amount of international media attention, and exciting new musical and promotional opportunities.”

A.C.E debuted in 2017 with single “Cactus,” which peaked at No. 21 on Billboard’s World Digital Song Sales chart. The group has since toured the world and released an album (2018’s A.C.E Adventures in Wonderland) and three EPs — including 2019’s Under Cover, which debuted at No. 9 on World Albums, follow-up Under Cover: The Mad Squad and their most recent project in September, HJZM: The Butterfly Phantasy.

“We’re excited and inspired for this next chapter of our careers,” the band said in a joint statement, “not only to pursue our dreams as a group, but to hopefully reach the dreams and expectations so many of our global fans have for us.”

Beat Interactive founder and CEO Kim Hye-im adds that investing in music is crucial amid the global coronavirus pandemic: “K-pop artists’ musical activities and outside roles are more important than ever to overcome this difficult situation with a sense of mission,” she says. “I feel we must continue to give our fans courage and hope to overcome this situation.”

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Cher Is Staying COVID Safe Around Her Mom, Gets ‘Tested All the Time’

Cher is making sure she and her family stay healthy this holiday season.

“I get tested [for COVID] all the time,” the icon told People, before noting that she has to be “very careful” around her 93-year-old mother, Georgia Holt.

“We have a little bubble that we’ve had all this time,” she explained. “We wear masks, and there’s not very many of us. It’s my sister, my brother-in-law, my mom, my assistant. And we stay far apart from each other.”

Cher herself is 74 years old and revealed that she has asthma and “different health problems.”

Back in May, the star released a cover of the Spanish version of the 1979 ABBA smash “Chiquitita,” which premiered on UNICEF’s COVID-19 Virtual Special. “UNICEF called and I told them I would donate my proceeds from the song like ABBA did with their Spanish version,” she told Billboard at the time. “I shot my part of the video at home and they later sent me the final cut with children from around the world in it. It’s such a beautiful, optimistic experience. It’s great when you can see anything positive now because all of the turmoil we are in.”

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MSG Entertainment Takes Over Sphere Construction in Las Vegas

Madison Square Garden Entertainment is taking back the reins on its much-ballyhooed MSG Sphere venue at The Venetian in Las Vegas, the company announced Thursday (Dec. 17).

According to a release, construction on the state-of-the-art venue — first announced in February 2018 by MSG executive chairman and CEO James Dolan at a splashy interactive presentation held at Radio City Music Hall — will now be spearheaded by MSG Entertainment, with general contractor AECOM transitioning to a supporting role under a new services agreement. AECOM was first enlisted for the project in June 2019.

“MSG Entertainment, through a wholly-owned subsidiary, will manage construction of MSG Sphere in Las Vegas, with direct responsibility for strategic planning and the construction timeline, as well as management of all subcontractors,” the release reads.

Construction of the venue will continue to be overseen by MSG Entertainment’s Jayne McGivern, who has been given the new title of president of development and construction (she was formerly executive vp development and construction). McGivern has put together “a world-class team of construction management professionals” who will be responsible for seeing the project through to completion and “retaining the knowledge gained for future MSG Sphere projects,” reads the release, suggesting AECOM will not be leading the construction of any future MSG Sphere venues.

The internal team assembled by McGivern — including members who have collectively worked on projects including the O2 Arena, London Olympic Stadium, Aria Hotel & Resort in Las Vegas and Fisht Olympic Stadium in Sochi, Russia — will direct all aspects of the project while overseeing 30 AECOM employees who will continue to support key areas of construction, including health and safety.

“We have taken significant steps to strengthen our internal construction team. This, along with valued support from AECOM, will give us greater transparency and control over the construction process, while enabling us to continue benefiting from AECOM’s expertise,” said McGivern in a statement. “MSG Sphere will be a venue unlike any other, and we believe we are well-positioned to not only advance our Las Vegas project, but also deliver on our long-term vision for MSG Sphere.”

The release touts “significant progress” on construction of the venue, noting that the structure reached its widest point earlier this year with completion of its sixth-level concrete ring beam, which is 490 feet wide and sits 113 feet above ground. The construction team has additionally finished placing two 240-ton steel girders that sit 140 feet off the ground and span the length of what will be the venue’s stage, “paving the way for continued vertical construction.”

Over the coming year, the construction team will focus on several of the venue’s critical path elements. Currently, work is focused on completing all superstructure concrete pours, including finishing stair and elevator cores and the venue’s proscenium wall. After that, steel will be placed for the remaining exterior ring beams and inboard decks, leading to construction of the steel domed roof beginning early next year.

As MSG Entertainment previously disclosed in its August earnings report, the opening of MSG Sphere at The Venetian has been pushed from 2021 to sometime in 2023 — a cost-saving measure necessitated by the pandemic’s negative impact on the company’s bottom line, with fiscal fourth quarter revenues having plummeted 96% year-over-year. In its fiscal second quarter earnings report in February (before the pandemic necessitated a shutdown of live events in the U.S.), the company estimated the final cost of the project at $1.66 billion.

Under McGivern’s watch, a second MSG Sphere is already being planned in London “pending necessary approvals,” with hopes for smaller Sphere venues down the line. McGivern joined MSG Entertainment in 2018 following stints as CEO of the European Division of Multiplex plc and managing director of Anschutz Entertainment Group in London.

Located on an 18-acre site on Sands Avenue between Manhattan Street and Koval Lane, MSG Sphere at The Venetian will boast a spherical shape and fully-programmable LED exterior. The estimated 17,500-seat venue will be 360 feet tall and 516 feet wide and connect to the Venetian Resort via an approximately 1,000-foot long pedestrian bridge. The venue’s more than 160,000 square foot display surface will encompass the stage and audience to create a completely immersive, virtual reality-style experience.

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Garth Brooks on CBS Holiday Special With Trisha Yearwood & The Christmas Tradition He’s Breaking This Year

The holiday season will look very different for many people this year with COVID-19 restricting travel and keeping people from joining their loved ones in person.

Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood are no exception, but they are bringing a bit of Christmas cheer from a safe social distance on Sunday with Garth and Trisha Live! A Holiday Concert Event, which will air live on CBS.

The format, which will be audience-free, will be similar to the couple’s CBS special in April, during which they took requests. This time, the focus will be on holiday songs, though Brooks tells Billboard, “If things get silly and things go to ‘I’ve got friends in low ho ho places,’ I think you can try to stretch to try to get music from an artist you want to hear on a Christmas special.”

The pair’s spring CBS concert drew more than 5.65 million viewers and earned a repeat on the network. In addition, they and CBS donated $1 million to charities fighting the COVID-19 virus.

“[CBS executive] Jack Sussman was sweet enough to say, ‘Hey, man, we should do another one.’ Our thought was we’re promoting two albums, Fun and Triple Live Deluxe, but it got so close to Christmas, we said, ‘Let’s just keep it to holiday stuff,’” Brooks says.

Brooks says the two won’t limit themselves to their recorded holiday output, which includes their holiday duets album, 2016’s Christmas Together; his two solo Christmas albums, 1992’s Beyond the Season and 1999’s Garth Brooks & the Magic of Christmas; or her 1994 solo album, The Sweetest Gift. “Hopefully, there will be some stuff that we’ve never recorded,” Brooks says. “We’re just looking at the requests as they come in.”

Though the special will start at 8 p.m. ET, Brooks adds that he and Yearwood will likely sign on to his Facebook page 30 minutes to an hour beforehand, so people can start enjoying the performance before they switch to CBS.

Fans may even see the two perform Brooks’ favorite holiday song, José Feliciano’s “Feliz Navidad.” “I’ve loved it ever since I was a little kid,” he says. “It’s so fun and upbeat. It’s not like the old traditional classics you hear when you’re little.”

Brooks and Yearwood are usually joined by his three grown daughters for the holidays, but because of coronavirus, it will just be the two of them. “My favorite Christmas tradition is decorating the tree with the girls, always. We’ve done it since they were babies,” he says. “They always decorate the tree, we tell stories. With COVID, we’re not getting together this year, so it’s no tree. We’ve got one outside that we put lights on, but no ornaments, but the tree that sits inside right where I’m staring won’t be there and it’s to honor that tradition. It makes me sad, but it makes me love that we’re not going to do it without them.”

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Crocodile Was ‘Blown Away That I Even Made It Top Three’ on ‘Masked Singer’

[Spoiler alert: This story contains the identity of the eliminated third-place finisher on Wednesday night’s (Dec. 16) The Masked Singer finale.]

Crocodile put on quite a show during his run on season 4 of The Masked Singer. And while he could only swim his way to third place on Wednesday night’s finale showdown with winner Sun and second-place finisher Mushroom, the veteran showbiz kid made it a wild ride. From a towering “Silent Night” to emotional covers of Aerosmith’s “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” and Leona Lewis’ “Bleeding Love,” a rocking “It’s My Life” by Bon Jovi and a high-energy run through pal Britney Spears’ “Toxic,” Crocodile gave it his all. But even his heart-swelling take of Journey’s “Open Arms” couldn’t get him to the winner’s circle.

The judges were all over the place, with guesses that ranged from Broadway/TV/movie veteran Neil Patrick Harris to judge Jenny McCarthy Wahlberg’s hubby, Donnie — which was way closer than they thought — but when the shimmery pink head came off it was none other than Backstreet Boys member Nick Carter.

The 40-year-old veteran performer whose new solo single, “80’s Movie,” is due out this Friday, hopped on the phone with Billboard before his elimination to talk about why his pink Croc costume was a dead-on emotional choice and how he thinks his Britney cover was the perfect complement to BSB’s recently released collab with their former Jive Records labelmate on “Matches.”

Crocodiles have a thick skin, and in the clue packages you alluded to the fact that you’ve had to grow one as a child star coming up in the biz. Why did you choose him and why was he so pink?

People who know me, my friends and family and children, know that I’m extremely sensitive and I’m just a lover, and the color pink just popped up for me from the performance side of things. But also the feeling that pink gives me when I look at it… it makes me happy.

You’ve done reality TV before with House of Carters, I Heart Nick Carter and Dancing With the Stars. How did this compare?

This experience was definitely unlike anything because of the secrecy that had we had to have behind the scenes and then had to add on top of it all the [COVID-19 safety] protocols, tests every single day and the masks we had to wear on top of the masks and how careful we all had to be. At the same time, hiding our identity form one another was also definitely a challenge, but was also rewarding. Before I even decided to do the show we had all been on lockdown for three months and I committed to it, but at the same time it was running through my mind, “How are we going to do this? How is it going to work?” Until you get on the set and experience it for the first time filming in this new world you don’t know what to expect.

You came in second place on DWTS. Did that make you want to win this even more?

I say this all the time, but on Dancing With the Stars when I got second place, I was just grateful to be there and come that far. I never set too much of a goal one way or another. I just try to live in the moment and enjoy the experience and wherever it takes me, that’s where I land. I was extremely surprised when I landed at two on Dancing and blown away that I even made it top three on this. It’s probably because I’m very critical of my talent and who I am as an artist. I’m one out of five in my group and we’re a team. I’ve stepped out before with solo records, and they never really did anything, never took off, and part of me feels like I was a failure when it came to being a solo artist. Then I think, “No, did I want to win?” When I look at my children and my wife, I feel like I’m grateful to be here and feel like I’m a winner because I have two healthy babies that I totally live for.

You’re so recognizable as part of the Backstreet Boys. Was there something fun for you about being an anonymous singer for the first time in your life?

I’ve been watching the show as it’s been going and analyzing my performances and I’ll say, “Wow, it wasn’t as bad as I thought it was.” I’ve been in my group since I was 11 years old and entertaining people and being a part of their lives and giving them an escape has been my job and I love it. I really, really enjoy being part of my group. Now that I’m stepping out and we’ve had the COVID thing going on and we’ve all had to be socially distanced… I’ve had to find a way to blossom and do things on our own. I thought it was a cool opportunity to  grow and learn about myself.

So what did you learn? How did you grow?

One thing I definitely grew from was to not be so critical of myself when it comes to being an entertainer and the joy of it. Putting the mask on and performing so people could only hear my voice and them enjoying it… that got me that far and it gave me confidence to say maybe my talent has matured to the point where I can give it a shot from the solo perspective. That’s why I’m recording another solo record now and getting ready to drop a single.

You’re pals with Britney from way back, was it fun to cover one of her songs?

When I was picking the songs I wanted to perform I was like, “Oh God, I’m very eclectic when it comes to music.” I listen to rap, rock, classic rock, pop, dance, soul, every kind of music. I’ve done it all. For fans of our era of music, Britney and us were partners on Jive Records coming up with *NSYNC and we all did it tougher and broke down that door in America. So I thought that was a way to throw people off a bit… that’s another one of my biggest issues with being a solo artist. With my voice I can sing in a lot of different ways in a wide range and I felt like maybe I could utilize that and try to trick people on the show. I would see people writing [on Twitter] who were like, “You can’t disguise your voice Nick, we know it’s you!” I’d read stuff like that on social media and I was like, “No, you don’t know it’s me!” That Britney Spears song was definitely a way to throw people off. I don’t know, maybe Britney saw the performance and she liked it, but right after that we decided to [release “Matches”]. So maybe it inspired her.

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